Fourteenth Flare - Clothes and Eggs

[prominence_glow]

[The feed clicks on to show a close-up view of... a chocobo chick's face. It's a certain red one, and it pecks at the screen curiously before it's pulled away.]

Man, relax, Alex ! Yeesh, you're really annoying today, y'know that? Go climb on the bookshelf again.

[As the chocobo chick wiggles in his hands, Lea goes to plop onto his bed. With the way the SFC is faced and Lea is sitting, it's easy to mistake him for Axel more than ever as the tattooed portion of his face isn't in view. The only thing that gives a hint that he's himself is the fact that his red hair, while down and non-spiked for once, isn't nearly long enough, and there's the loop of tattoo ink around his throat. At the end of his bed are a huge pile of clothes, which Lea nudges with one foot. One can just barely see an itty bitty incubation station on the other side of his bed, where a chocobo egg is. Alex seems determined to climb onto it.]

I'm outgrowing everything... I WOULD get my growth spurt now! My clothes are starting not to fit...

[Flopping onto his side and facing the SFC, he places a cheek in his hand.]

Got any ideas, Vat? Gimme your favorite stores. I mean, there has to be someone with decent- [He turns around suddenly, frowning. A certain chick has been trying to scale and flap its way up to the incubator.] Alex! Quit it! Seriously, you crazy bird...

[Rolling off of the bed, Lea crouches down and scoops up the pigeon-sized bird- whose been growing just as much as he has in the last day or so. He's grumbling, but suddenly  a small crack interrupts him. Pausing, he blinks at the incubator.

Another cracking noise, and there's clearly a little line going through the egg. A tiny, almost miniscule chirp. The egg rocks a bit.

And Lea makes the most ecstatic high pitched noise and rushes out of his room, carting Alex off.]

STEEEEEEEIN!

[Needless to say, Lea may be a bit... late in replying to other people.]

Comments

[dystopiadreams.livejournal.com]

*Selphie's looking genuinely sad now*

...are you brothers?

[prominence-glow.livejournal.com]

I'd never wanna be brothers with an asshole like him! He's the worst!

_{[SELF LOATHING, SELF LOATHING, SELF LOATHING.]}

[dystopiadreams.livejournal.com]

Really?

*She seems genuinely surprised*

How come? He seems really nice to me.

[prominence-glow.livejournal.com]

_{[Is it ranting about Axel time? Clearly.]}

Well, he's not! He's a jerk and a liar and keeps secrets other people should be allowed to know and ditches his friends!

_{[Lea falls back against the bed, cuddling Alex and Myde against his chest. He's glowering and sulking and every other kind of bad mood combined into one.]}

[dystopiadreams.livejournal.com]

*Have Selphie looking confused, and worried*

But... he's always so nice to me and... This doesn't sound like the same Axel!

*Because for all she knew of him, it didn't*

[prominence-glow.livejournal.com]

He's good at not telling the truth.

_{[It's not like Lea is biased or anything.]}

[dystopiadreams.livejournal.com]

...oh...

*Have a concerned Selphie face; maybe all his niceness wasn't real after all*

Well, he's... he's been nice to me so far. I haven't heard him lie.

[prominence-glow.livejournal.com]

The point of hiding jerkiness is to keep it hidden from other people so they don't suspect.

_{[Alex is now looking concerned and trying to cheer up his clearly angry and depressed boy while Myde just looks confused.]}

[dystopiadreams.livejournal.com]

*Selphie smiles at the chocobos, and clearly has different opinions about Axel*

So what happened? How come you don't like him?

[prominence-glow.livejournal.com]

_{[Lea bristles.]}

Back home, something horrible happens to me and Isa, and that asshole won't tell me what it is so I can avoid it.

[dystopiadreams.livejournal.com]

Of course he won't! I mean... wouldn't that mess stuff up? If you and Isa knew and could avoid it...?

*Thinking hard about time lines and time travel and all those things*

[prominence-glow.livejournal.com]

Who cares! [Clearly messing up the time lines is not high on Lea's priorities at all.] I don't care what would happen, so long as I could keep Isa safe!

[dystopiadreams.livejournal.com]

Okay... I know this might sound stupid, but maybe Axel's tying to keep YOU safe? Why wouldn't he...?

[prominence-glow.livejournal.com]

Because he's an asshole! [/default angry teen reasoning]

My safety doesn't matter! Isa is supposed to be his friend too! But he won't tell me anything that will save him!

[dystopiadreams.livejournal.com]

You know, it's cute that you want to help Isa so much, but you have to think about yourself too. Maybe I can talk to Axel... Think he might tell me?

[prominence-glow.livejournal.com]

Hell if I know.

[dystopiadreams.livejournal.com]

You know what? You can be a big jerk some times. I'm trying to help... ...why are you being angry at me?

Lately... Axel's far nicer to me than you are.

[prominence-glow.livejournal.com]

But I'm not-! This always happens!

[dystopiadreams.livejournal.com]

...what do you mean?

[prominence-glow.livejournal.com]

I always get blamed if I don't like someone.

[dystopiadreams.livejournal.com]

...

...

...how come you don't like me anymore?

[prominence-glow.livejournal.com]

I do. But whenever I get angry at someone- like that jerk guard, or that stupid jerk Axel, it's like everything's my fault.

[dystopiadreams.livejournal.com]

But... All I did was ask... and you got mad at me straight away...

[prominence-glow.livejournal.com]

I didn't get mad at you. Just... I dunno. In general.

[dystopiadreams.livejournal.com]

*Selphie gives a warm smile*

You know, you are really cute when you're mad..